"Laila!" The feeling of nausea overwhelms me, and I know exactly what it's coming from. It's as if I can smell it even though I'm not with her. Wolfsbane. "Laila!" I shout through our bond again. I hear the name Dorian whispered in her mind before everything goes blank. "Fuck!"
"What's going on?" Micah demands.
My control starts to slip, the anger inside me boiling over to the point I don't even know if I can stop myself from shifting. "He has her," I growl, my voice more primal than human. I slam my hands down on the kitchen counter, the granite cracking from the force. "I can't hear or feel her. They're using wolfsbane."
Amelie gasps. "That used not to bother her before."
"She's more shifter now," I say, growing angrier by the second. I turn my lethal glare to Faith. "Where's your brother? He was supposed to be with Laila. If he let anything happen to her, I'll kill him." I never should've let her go without me. Faith pulls out her phone, her hands shaking as she makes her call. I can hear the dial tone, ringing over and over until Colin's voicemail picks up. My rage multiplies by a million. "Goddammit to hell," I shout. "I have to find her."
I charge toward the door, but Micah jumps in my way. "You'll get yourself killed if you go by yourself. I need to call Zayne, and we need to get the pack together."
"And we have to get Beck," Faith calls out. "This is a fae problem. We've all seen what Laila can do with her magic. We don't stand a chance against a whole army of the dark fae." She looks out the window, and her eyes widen. "Colin's here."
Micah moves out of my way, and I slam open the door. He's not in his car but walking down the driveway. Everyone follows me out, but I storm straight toward him with Faith right on my heels.
"Where's Laila?" I shout through gritted teeth.
Colin stops and holds up his hands, looking confused. "What do you mean? Isn't she here?"
Faith rushes to him, putting herself between us. "You were the last person to talk to her."
Colin shakes his head. "How's that even possible? The last time I talked to her was Tuesday at her father's house. Also, both my car and phone are gone." He stares at us as if we have lost our minds. "I figured you guys were playing a fucking prank on me. I thought as soon as I got here, I'd see my car."
Micah and Amelie join us, and we all look at each other. Nothing makes sense. Whatever the hell is going on, it's not good. What's worse is that I can't feel Laila. "She said you were meeting her at Meredith's. Where does she live?"
Colin's expression grows even more confused. He has no idea what's going on. "That's news to me. I talked to Meredith this morning. She knew I was coming here."
My phone starts to ring, and when I pull it out of my pocket, Colin's name appears on my screen. Dread settles into the pit of my gut. "It's you," I say to Colin, tightening my grip on the phone. "I'm pretty sure I know who it's going to be." Everyone rushes over, and I take a deep breath, trying my best to calm my wolf down. I accept the call and put it on speakerphone so they all can hear. "Who is this?" I demand.
An evil laugh echoes through the phone. "You know who I am, Cedric."
I blow out a huff. "Dorian."
Beck takes this moment to appear out of thin air, but when he sees us, his smile disappears, especially when he hears Dorian's voice.
"Correct," Dorian replies.
"Where the fuck is Laila?" I growl.
"Oh, she's fine. Just a little incapacitated right now. I don't plan on hurting her, not unless she decides not to cooperate."
My body shakes with rage. "So help me God, if you put one scratch on her, I'll rip your fucking head off."
He bursts out laughing, which only pisses me off more. "I'd like to see you try, young wolf. It just so happens I don't give a shit about you or your pack. I'm after Beck." Beck storms closer, his hand on the hilt of his sword. "Having Laila gives me the leverage I need to get to him. You see, I know he'll be showing up at your house soon like he has every Friday for the past couple of months. It's kind of sad how he took up with a bunch of dogs that are beneath him."
"Easy to say through the phone, cocksucker," I say, feeling my fangs lengthen.
"You never should've let your guard down. I've been watching and waiting for three months to get to Laila. It was so easy." He chuckles again. "When Beck arrives, I want you to give him a message. He needs to come alone and turn himself over to me. Only then will I give up the sweet, young wolf. If he fails, she dies." He hangs up, and my skin burns like fire.
"This is your fault," I hiss, glaring right at Beck.
Beck's jaw clenches, but he doesn't argue with me. "I'll give myself up. I won't let her die for me."
"You're damn right, you won't. We need to find her."
Colin sighs. "I know where Meredith lives."
Beck stands in our way, his eyes wide with concern. "Did you say, Meredith?"
Colin nods. "Yeah, why?"
Beck hangs his head. "I bet it's Dorian's sister, Meridia."
"Great," I snap as I storm toward my truck. "They fooled us all."
Micah grabs his phone. "I have to call Zayne. We need to get the wolves together." He looks straight at me. "Go to Meredith's or Meridia's or whatever the fuck she's called, and we'll meet you there. I'll take Faith and Amelie to Ryker's."
Colin places a hand on my shoulder. "Let's go. If anyone can track Laila, it's you."
He follows me to my truck while Micah and the girls get into his car. I hop in my truck and shut the door, and Colin gets in beside me. Beck stands a couple of feet away, his expression tormented. "I'm sorry. The last thing I ever considered possible was Dorian going after Laila to get to me."
Now that I'm mated to Laila, I know she's entirely mine, but it hasn't stopped him from still caring about her. "He's been watching us. It doesn't take a genius to see that you have feelings for her."
He averts his gaze to the woods. "It's not like that anymore. She's my friend. What concerns me is my vow to her. Dorian knows we're connected. He'll torture her to get to me, and we both know she won't say my name. What's fucked up is that he knows I'll come willingly, but he'll do it all for fun."
And just like that, things get ten million times worse. Laila won't say his name, and I know that. "What are you going to do? You can't call your warriors."
His eyes meet mine. "No. I have to fight him on my own and hope I win. The future of my land depends on it. No matter what happens, we'll get Laila out safely." He takes a step back. "I'm going to search for Dorian and Laila on my own. I'll find you if something comes up." The air ripples behind him, and he disappears through the invisible door.
I start up my truck and speed out of the driveway toward Meredith's. "Do you think him sacrificing himself is going to be the end of it?" Colin asks.
There's a feeling in my gut I can't shake. "No."
"What are we going to do about it?"
"The question is what Laila's going to do. She won't leave Beck." I press my foot harder on the gas. Beck is her friend, and she's loyal. He may be a pain in the ass, but even I know the right thing to do is help. "I'm going to help him. I don't know how, but I'll figure it out."
It only takes a few minutes to get to Meredith's, and when I pull into her driveway, I can smell Laila's scent; it reminds me of summer apples. The front door is unlocked, and once inside, I pick up on two other scents. The stench of dark magic hangs heavy in the air. Dorian isn't hiding his trail anymore. We search the house, and in the basement is the room full of wolfsbane. There's a spot in the center of the place where Laila's scent is heavier, where she had laid.
I rush back upstairs, and Colin walks in the front door, his fists clenched. "I caught Meredith's scent in the woods. It was different this time. I can smell the dark magic on her."
"She's fae." I had met her at the stone shop and had no clue. None of us did, not even Laila, who is part fae. "They fooled us."
Colin punches the wall and storms outside. I follow him out, and Laila's trail leads us right into the woods. "Dorian's not hiding anymore."
"Do you think it's a trap?" Colin asks.
I huff. "Most definitely, but what choice do we have?" Pulling out my phone, I call Zayne.
"Have you found her?" he asks, his voice impatient. "We're on our way to you."
"I have her scent, and I'm going after her."
"Go. We'll catch up."
Sliding my phone into my back pocket, Colin and I take off into the forest. I'm not going to stop until I find her. We run for what feels like hours, but we follow Laila's scent until we come to a clearing in the woods. Through the trees, I see a house I recognize all too well. I've even been inside of it. The scent of rogue wolves hangs strongly in the air.
"Fuck me."
Colin runs a hand through his hair. "Exactly. This is Richard Tanner's house. Or so I thought. The bastard has rogues working for him."
"And that brings the war to us." I can sense three wolves at the back of the house and five more around the side.
A puff of cold air blows across me, and I look over to see Beck appear through the shimmering veil, which is the portal from our world to his. "The man isn't Richard Tanner. Unfortunately, just like you guys, Dorian can switch forms, but his magic is more of a glamour than an actual physical change." And just like that, it all makes sense. With Meredith being a dark fae, I led Laila right into their trap by taking her to the gem shop. Beck turns to me and Colin, his expression grim. "He's in the house right now. He wants me to find him. What's strange is that I can't sense any other fae besides him and his sister. The rest are wolves."
"Did you warn your people?" I ask.
He shakes his head. "I didn't want to take the chance of something going wrong." A low growl rumbles behind us, and I turn to see Zayne, Micah, Sebastian, and Ryker in wolf form. Beck nods at them and then focuses back on me. "Tell Laila I'm sorry for everything. I never wanted it to come to this."
As soon as he leaves the cover of the trees, I can feel the bond between Laila and me open up. "Cedric?"
My heart races, and I breathe a sigh of relief that I can hear her. "Thank fucking God. Are you okay?"
I can feel her uncertainty. "I don't know. I really don't know."